Month: Mar 2017

The Dulwich Gallery wants to erect a Pavilion in its grounds for the summer and has applied to the Council for permission. It also wants a licence for alcohol and late operating.

It is the 200th Anniversary of the Gallery so of course they want to celebrate. However, the amenity of residents will be affected in one way or another and particularly in Edward Alleyn House, Woodyard Lane (who heard the outdoor Belair House and Park Cinema noise on summer evenings in the past), College Gardens and College Road as well as Turney and Burbage Roads.

The Pavilion is temporary but there is no date for its removal and if it is a commercial success it could reappear next year or remain in place. The Gallery is understood to be looking for business hirers for summer parties. This is in addition to events such as weddings which are regularly held there. Included in the Gallery’s application to the council is cinema, dance, live and recorded music, a bar and other events. The Gallery does not say how frequently it plans to hold these events except that the application covers the months of June, July and August, every weekend and every evening in the week.

The Pavilion has no insulation against noise and neither would a marquee. There are precedents locally – Edward Alleyn Club and the Velodrome – where there have been successful negotiations with residents about events impinging on them. This is what the Gallery should consider in this instance, particularly if strong feelings develop about its proposals.

The Gallery should have approached residents in advance of its application to the council. As it has not done so, now is the time to tell the council and the councillors.

If a resident is happy with the plans there is no need to do anything.

Dulwich Hamlet Junior School in the centre of Dulwich Village had these signs and placards attached to its railings this morning.

The Government is cutting funding for schools in London. According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), the funding cuts particularly hit inner London schools. Already facing cash cuts of 2.5% per pupil before 2020, the further cuts amount to a 7% reduction for many schools.

The spending reductions come on top of a projected 6.5 per cent real terms cut for all schools between now and 2020, as a result of increasing pupil numbers, a rise in the minimum wage, the apprenticeship levy and higher employer contributions to national insurance and pensions. (Financial Times 22 March 2017)

The Dulwich Village primary schools are popular with our families. Cutting their funds as we embark on new competitive world relationships is counter what would be expected.

MPs have launched a “super inquiry” into Britain’s toxic air scandal to force the Government to dramatically step up action to tackle the health threat to millions of people.

In an unprecedented move, four Commons committees are to grill ministers and air quality experts on the dangers from filthy air in London and other cities.

The hearings by the health committee, transport committee, environmental audit committee and environment, food and rural affairs committee will be held as the Government draws up its latest plans to deal with toxic air.

Labour MP Mary Creagh, who chairs the environmental audit committee, said: “Ministers will face unprecedented scrutiny in Parliament to ensure they finally step up to the mark to ensure adults, and children in particular, do not have their health damaged by filthy air.

Ministers have been forced to draw up new proposals to cut air pollution after judges backed environmental lawyers ClientEarth in two high-profile cases that the Government was failing to do enough to reduce nitrogen dioxide levels.

The draft new plans are due to be published on April 24 and the MPs want to ensure they not only meet legal requirements but also deliver maximum health and environmental benefits.

We may think of kerbsides as just space on the public highway next to the pavement. But they are more than that. Kerbsides include footpaths by the kerb and which might be widened for tree planting and street seating. They include the white posts and green verges we love in Dulwich.

There is great competition for the kerbsides from vehicles, cyclists, pedestrians, house occupants, push-chairs, etc. etc. We know only too well how busy our kerbsides are at times and how they are hazardous for the unwary, the reckless and those of us who are a unsteady because of age, youth or illness.

The Council makes some important points for us to think about. Among them are:

Demographic Pressure: The population is growing faster in Southwark than expected. At the last census in 2011 it was 288,000 and today is estimated to be 306,000. The government forecasts it will be 370,000 by 2031, an increase of 82,000 or 28% in 20 years!

Parking: 60% of Southwark households don’t own a vehicle, yet parking in the borough takes up an increasing amount of kerbside space. In our streets, however, many households own multiple cars and large ones at that. Parking is the issue which sparks greatest interest in our streets. There has to be an improvement in access to and usage of public transport.

Road Safety and the Environment: The Council wants to improve the lives of older residents and to enable them to live independently for longer. Older people typically drive less and favour public transport. There are increasing numbers of older people in Southwark. There is a demand for wider footpaths, more frequent and safer pedestrian crossings, accessible bus stops and uncluttered, pleasant neighbourhood centres to sit and relax in.

Traffic Collisions: More people walking or cycling in Southwark are killed or injured than in any other mode of transport. Road traffic accidents are increasing each year. In 2015 there were over 1,000 in Southwark with 90 fatal ones.

Air quality: According to the 2015 King’s College University report, up to 9,500 deaths in London each year can be linked to air pollution. Southwark’s road transport emissions are amongst the highest in London. There are a number of sites that exceed legal levels of NO2 (Southwark Air Quality Action Plan, 2013). At peak traffic periods, Dulwich Village experiences poor air quality, right by the primary schools.

There are many competing demands which we are making and are set out in the Council’s draft strategy. The council wants our views.

The consultation period on Southwark’s Kerbside Strategy has just started and closes on 28 April.

This may come across as a curious question and you may wonder whether it matters. It is a question that is troubling some locals as they are being asked to decide one or the other.

This all comes about because the Government is insisting that local neighbourhoods are defined and that they are to have neighbourhood plans setting local guidelines and policies.

Government guidance explains what factors need to be considered in drawing up a boundary for neighbourhoods but the main point about being in one area or another is money. Neighbourhoods with approved plans are entitled to twice the amount of money from Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) than if there were no plan. The sum of money is unknown. It may not be much – especially if there is little development.

Each borough has its own CIL policy. Herne Hill is shared between Lambeth and Southwark councils.

The Herne Hill Forum has been around for over 10 years and is busy identifying its neighbourhood boundaries. Members of the Dulwich Village Forum are trying to do the same for the Dulwich neighbourhood. Thankfully they are talking to each other so a sensible outcome is likely.

Current proposals would put the Lambeth part of Turney Road in Herne Hill neighbourhood and the rest in Dulwich. The boundary between Herne Hill & Dulwich in Burbage Road appears to be moving, as discussions take place, from an earlier proposal for the railway viaduct to the junction with Turney Road. The Herne Hill Velodrome wants to be included in the Herne Hill neighbourhood, not in Dulwich.

If all this seems confusing or you’re asking ‘what does it matter?’ more will come clear as the discussions become more and more public…..we hope!